When the Bloke Gets the Girl
by DanceDiva
Summary: Summary: I'll never understand what James Potter sees in me, but he tells me I'm beautiful once a day at least. "And I will spend as much time is necessary to make you see that." Lily James. Angst. Fluff. One-shot. COMPLETE


Summary: I'll never understand what James Potter sees in me, but he tells me I'm beautiful once a day at least. "And I will spend as much time is necessary to make you see that." Lily James. Angst. Fluff. One-shot. COMPLETE

When the Bloke Gets the Girl

I'll never understand what James Potter sees in me. My nose is too large for my liking, my auburn curls frizz at the slightest hint of moisture, and my butt is too big for my slim waist. I'm not well proportioned, although I guess my eyes are all right, a deep emerald green hidden beneath long lashes. Probably my best feature; James seems to like them, but he likes quite a few things about me. For that reason, he should be admitted to the insanity ward in St. Mungo's. No one in their right mind would like me. I have a horrible temper that can be released on anyone, I'm a perfectionist, and I can't find one good quality about myself.

James tells me I'm beautiful once a day at least, even when my nose is red from a cold and my voice has dropped an octave. But I can't believe him. Maybe my friends have had too much of an influence on me, always telling me that boys only want me for a good snog or to brag that the perfect prefect Lily Evans succumbed to their charm before dumping me. It's completely messed up, but I can't think of any other reason. Maybe I need to check myself into St. Mungo's.

"Lily?"

I'm startled out of my daze. I'd been gazing out the window of the Gryffindor Common Room, watching the rain, before being shocked out of my depressing mind ramblings.

"Lily? Are you all right?"

I look up and into James' warm hazel eyes. "I'm fine," I say.

"Well, you've been staring out that window for the past hour. A couple of first years were pitching a fit, and you didn't even twitch. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I just have a lot on my mind."

Wasn't that the truth?

"Want to talk about it?"

"Not really." I take the time to really look at him. His hair is tousled, as usual, and his nose has dirt smudged on it. "I'd rather hear what you've been up to."

His eyebrows disappear into his hairline. "Really?"

"Yeah. Your stories are bound to be more interesting than mine."

"I disagree, but I'll tell you anyway. Fancy a trip to the kitchens?"

"Sure." He helps me down from the windowsill and follows me out the portrait hole.

I figure that listening to tales about the Marauders would be far more entertaining than staring out the window for hours on end.

We walk down to the kitchens in a silent camaraderie. I have nothing to say, and James doesn't start a conversation either, but I can feel his eyes on me every once in a while. I know he's wondering about the recent change in my personality, my temper has been held at bay and I've been much quieter. Although, some would probably think of this as a positive change, but James gives me this look like he knows something isn't quite right but he doesn't pester me for answers. And for that I am thankful.

The moment we enter the kitchens the house elves surround us, willing to prepare anything we want. James orders possibly every chocolate dessert know to man. I look at the array of edible comfort, trying to decide where to start my feasting. A small smile works its way onto my face as the chocolate moves through my system.

"Now that's better," James says, using his fork to point out my growing smile.

I put another spoonful of deliciousness into my mouth before muttering "thank you" to James.

The smile on his face makes mind grow even more. As his reaches his eyes, I notice the dirt on his nose once more.

Swallowing quickly, I say, "You know, you never told me what you were doing today."

"No, I didn't. Well…" He leans forward and there's this glint in his eyes that always appears whenever he and his friends have done something a little reckless. "Sirius decided it would be a great idea to play a two-on-two game of Quidditch while it was raining, to add a bit of dimension to it."

"Do Remus and Peter even play?" I hadn't seen either of them on a broom since first year.

"Only with us. They're not too bad either. We always have a great time," he replies. "I think we were out there for at least two hours. Our robes were completely soaked through, but we didn't care. We were walking back up to the castle, and Sirius tackled me into this huge mud puddle."

I burst out laughing. The image of those two landing in a muddy spot is so perfectly Sirius.

"Being the quick bugger that he is, Sirius ran off, so I took off after him, chucking handfuls of mud at his back. He yelped each time one hit its mark."

"Well of course he would. You were throwing mud at him."

"He deserved it. He threw me _in_ the mud."

I shake my head at him. "You two are such children sometimes."

"I would be offended if that weren't true." I roll my eyes, and he chuckles. "So, I chased him into the castle where he slipped and almost fell. That slowed him down just enough that I was able to catch up and take him down."

"Poor Sirius."

"No. Not poor Sirius. Poor me. He tackled me first."

"Into something soft. Not a hard, stone floor."

James is sulking a bit with his lip jutting out slightly.

"Anyway…" He narrows his eyes at me, probably to stop my interruptions. (Not that he's actually mad at me; he can be a good actor when he wants to be.) I clamp my lips together tightly to signify the silence he would receive from me, only to have it morph into a smirk a moment later.

"We were wrestling when Filch comes down the corridor, screaming about stupid kids and stringing us up by our toes in the dungeon," he continues. "We got out of there as fast as we could, while shooting _Scourgify_ at the floor behind us and at ourselves."

"Well, you missed a spot." I point to his nose.

He curses, wiping it off. He motions to keep my mouth shut and continues with his story. "When we got back to our dorms, we were both out of breath. 'Stupid bugger,' I said to Sirius, 'why'd you have to tackle me into a mud puddle? I'll be pulling mud out of my hair for weeks, even after washing it.' He just laughed and said, 'You know you love me.'"

James chuckles while I blanch considerably at that one word, which is quite the feat since my skin is so fair already.

He grows silent, most likely noticing the lack of laughter from me.

"Lily? Is something wrong?" he asks.

"What? No. Nothing's wrong. Why would anything be wrong?"

He raises an eyebrow.

"You never were a good liar. What's going on?"

"Nothing. I was just remembering something that Sirius told me."

"And what would that be?"

"It's not that big of a deal."

"Really? Then, you would have no problem telling me."

I shove my face into my hands. I know I can't get out of having this conversation. James is just as stubborn as I am, and he won't let this go. If he doesn't get it out of me, then he would go to Sirius, and they could come to the wrong conclusions. And I couldn't have that.

"Fine." I lower my hands but don't look at him. "I was talking to Sirius a few weeks ago about that dreadful Transfiguration essay, the one you stayed up until three in the morning to help me write. Well, I told him how much I appreciated it, and I didn't understand why you would stay up so late to help me." I play with my hands. I won't look at him. "Sirius said it's because you're 'practically in love with me.'"

"What if I am?"

"No. No! That's insane. I've been so cruel to you the past few years, fifth year especially. We might not even be friends now if we weren't made Head Boy and Girl and forced to put our past behind us. So why? Why me? How?"

I'm talking too fast and not allowing my breathing to catch up with my speech. My chest is practically heaving, and I want to forget James' admission.

But then he's sitting beside me, straddling the bench, turning me towards him and lifting my face gently so my eyes meet his.

"I deserved your treatment toward me because I was a complete prat to you. But I grew up, and so did you. You became the girl I want to be with. You're passionate, smart, absolutely stunning."

I shake my head.

He stops the motions. "You are."

"You're crazy."

"Crazy for you."

I stare at him for a moment before starting to laugh.

"I cannot believe you just said that," I say in between giggles. "That is one of the most cliché lines I have ever heard."

"I got it from one of my mum's romance novels. You like it?"

I'm still laughing quietly as I shake my head.

"It worked for the bloke in the book. Any chance it worked for you?"

My laughing fit over, I smile and answer, "Maybe."

He tucks some of my hair behind my ear. "That conversation with Sirius has been bothering you for a while, hasn't it?" I nod. "Sirius told me about it, how you think I'm delusional for the reasons I'm crazy about you. I assure you that I am perfectly sane and that you are amazing. And I will spend as much time is necessary to make you see that."

I can't help but smile at the boy. I don't know what I did to deserve him.

"You know…" he says, "this is usually the part in the book when the bloke gets the girl."

I laugh lightly for a second and stop to pull him toward me and kiss him.

The End

A/N: Thanks so much for reading this story. I've had the beginning of this written for over a year now, and I decided that instead of writing my last paper ever of my undergraduate career I would finish this fic. I hope you enjoyed it!


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